SAVE MONMOUTH MEDICAL CENTER
ACT NOW!
It’s time to sound the alarm: the decision by the NJ Department of Health to let RWJBarnabas move nearly all services from Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch to a new hospital at Fort Monmouth is a dangerous mistake that will endanger patients and destabilize regional healthcare.
Why This Fight Matters
Protect Long Branch’s Most Vulnerable:
The What: RWJBarnabas Health (RWJBH) has filed an application with the NJ Department of Health to relocate nearly all acute inpatient services provided at Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch to a new hospital at Fort Monmouth.
What this means: The following essential services would all be moved out of Long Branch:
Intensive Care Unit (ICU)
Critical Care Unit (CCU)
All inpatient beds (except behavioral health)
OB/GYN (birthing facilities)
Pediatrics
Inpatient surgery
Cardiac care – including heart attack care
Comprehensive stroke center
Who will suffer: This is a drastic reduction of care that will disproportionately harm the uninsured, minority, and chronically ill residents of Long Branch and the surrounding communities, who will lose their birthing center, access to a cardiac cath lab for heart attack care, and rapid stroke treatment.
RWJBH has not proposed any plan to maintain these services for the Long Branch community. The additional travel time to Fort Monmouth will make it even harder for people to receive timely care and will put more strain on local EMS services and response times.
Prevent Healthcare Overload:
Why is this happening? There’s no clear reason why a new hospital is needed, and no one has really looked at how it would affect the hospitals already in Monmouth County.
How will this impact neighboring hospitals? The new Fort Monmouth hospital would actually be closer to all four of the other nearby hospitals than the current Long Branch location. Hospitals like Jersey Shore University Medical Center (JSUMC) could see a big increase in patients.
JSUMC will be the closest hospital for many, but it’s already overcrowded and other area hospitals less than 5 miles from the new site could lose patients, making it harder for them to keep services running smoothly.
These other hospitals already provide many of the same services that would be moved from Long Branch, so this change could hurt care for everyone in the area.
NExt Steps
This is not a done deal.
The DOH declared the RWJBH CN “complete” on October 17 but it is not approved yet. There will be a public hearing in Eatontown:
SHOW UP. SPEAK OUT!
PUBLIC HEARING
November 13, 4-6 pm
Anne Vogel Family Care and Wellness Center
200 Wyckoff Road, Eatontown, NJ 07724
If you can’t attend, you can submit comments in writing after the hearing. All comments must be received by the State Health Planning Board no later than Thursday, November 20, 2025. Please click here or scroll down to see options for commenting.
Our Message is Clear
We are disappointed with the Department of Health’s decision to move forward, but this is only the first step. We will not back down. We will continue to fight to ensure residents have access to vital, life-saving acute care services.
JOIN US
Your voice is powerful! Join us and sign up for our mailing list below to protect the health of Long Branch and all of Monmouth County.
MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD
Use the form below to share your concerns — your voice matters. Submit your message to help us make an impact and ensure your voice is heard. Comments may also be submitted in writing after the hearing. All comments must be received by the State Health Planning Board no later than Thursday, November 20, 2025.
The below form will allow you to directly contact the State Health Planning Board via email. If you would prefer to send a physical letter, please send your comments to:
New Jersey Department of Health
55 North Willow Street, 6th Floor
P.O. Box 360
Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0360
Attention: Carrie Camp and/or Michelle Saupe